


Hocus Pocus

by texasbelle91



Series: Greyhound Bound [3]
Category: The Walking Dead (TV)
Genre: Bethyl Babies, F/M, Father-Daughter Relationship, Gen, Halloween, Mother-Daughter Relationship, TWD Bethyl, TWD Bethyl babies, bethyl, bethyl fluff, halloween fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-10-21
Updated: 2016-11-03
Packaged: 2018-08-23 19:21:02
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 7,402
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8339659
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/texasbelle91/pseuds/texasbelle91
Summary: A little Bethyl Halloween story. It is a third installment to the Greyhound Bound series which include Backseat of a Greyhound Bus and Just Fishin'.





	1. Hocus Pocus - Part I

**Author's Note:**

> A/N: Here is a little Bethyl story for y'all for Halloween. I originally intended on it being a one shot but that's no longer the case. It will have a few more parts to it. I hope y'all enjoy it and please leave a review.

Beth quickly opened the front door when she heard Daryl's truck coming up the driveway.

She did her best to hide her smile as she watched Celia climb out of the truck followed by Daryl who looked as if he had recently been told some horrible news.

"How did it go?" She asked as Celia ran past her and Daryl bent down to place a kiss on her cheek.

"Our daughter is crazy," he said so Celia wouldn't overhear him. "How tha hell do ya think it went?"

"Well, did she at least settle on a costume?" She asked, following him into the house.

"What do ya think?" He snapped.

"Hey, you do not get to be snippy with me, Mr. Dixon. I asked you a simple question and that's it."

He sat down in the recliner and stared up at her.

"I know," he said with a sigh, "Do you know what it's like ta go shoppin' with that girl? We was only s'posed ta go ta one place an' get 'er somethin' but..."

"But she batted her lashes, pouted a little and said 'pretty please daddy'?" Beth finished.

Daryl nodded and buried his face in his hands with a groan. "She wants me ta dress up as some damn prince or some shit," he mumbled behind his hands.

Beth giggled and sat down on the couch.

"Aw hell, ya knew what she wanted, didn't ya?"

"Yeah, I did. But I didn't think you would have a problem with it. You dressed up as the scarecrow last year when she went as Dorothy."

"You was there too. She had ya dress up as that good witch. Why ain't she tryin' ta get ya dress up with 'er 'stead a me?"

"Daryl, don't be like that. She wanted her daddy to dress up with her, not me. Besides, if I were to dress up this year the only thing I can go as is a whale or the Goodyear blimp."

He chuckled and laid his head back against the chair.

"Don't you dare laugh, Daryl Dixon. You are the one who did this to me."

He smiled over at her. "Yeah, an' I didn't hear ya complainin'."

She shook her head and smiled back at him. "I'll talk to her and see if she's willin' to compromise for her daddy but don't be surprised if you end up wearin' tights. You know she's stubborn and she always gets her way, especially with you."

"Jus' like 'er mama," he muttered and then huffed when Beth chunked a pillow from the couch at him but kept smiling.

* * *

 

Celia huffed and put her hands on her hips as she marched into the living room.

"Mommy, tell Daddy he has ta dress up as Prince Charmin' fer me." Daryl snorted.

"Damn girl, I know ya tell me what ta do but ya best be nice. Mama tells us both what ta do."

She snapped her head towards her daddy and said, "I'm not talkin' ta you."

"Celia Annette Dixon, what is wrong with you? That is no way to talk to your daddy!"

"But…," she stomped her foot. "Daddy was mean an' said I couldn't go as Cinderella 'casue he wasn't goin' as Prince Charmin'."

"I don't care if your daddy was mean or not, if you keep on with that attitude you won't go as Cinderella or anythin' else for Halloween. Now go to your room."

"You're mean, mommy," Celia said as she stormed off.

"Beth, c'mon. She didn't mean anythin' by that. She's jus' mad at me."

Beth shook her head. "Daryl, you always do this. Every time I get onto her, you try to take up for her. I used to think it was cute, her bein' a daddy's girl and all, but now it's gettin' to be too much. She can't always get her way. I know you don't like seein' her mad or anythin' but you have to deal with it. Next time she talks to you like that, you better get onto her for it."

"Celia's right, ya are mean. I'm startin' ta thinkin' that kid in ya is part evil or some shit like that."

Beth narrowed her eyes. "You want to go to your room, too?"

Daryl pushed himself up out of the chair and knelt down in front of her.

"I'm sorry, baby, but ya know she wasn't gettin' no attitude with either a us. She jus' wanted ya tell me I had ta go as as what she wanted me to. She didn't mean nothin' by it."

"I know. I just don't want her actin' like a spoiled brat."

"But she ain't. Ever'one is always sayin' how polite she is an' she's got good manners. That's all thanks ta her mama. Now, are ya still gon' talk ta 'er 'bout what she's goin' as?"

"Yes, I will, Daryl but I think she can sweat it out for a little bit. I don't want her thinkin' she can get her way by actin' like that or by havin' her daddy sweet talk her mama."

"Jus' don't wait too long," he said and leaned in to kiss her. "Halloween is this weekend."

"I won't wait too long but in the meantime, I better get us all fed."

"Naw, stay here an' watch a movie. Me an' Celia will fix somethin' ta eat."

"Thank you."

* * *

 

"Daddy, is mommy mad at me?" Celia asked while handing him the taco shells and tortillas.

"Naw, baby girl. Mama ain't mad at ya. She jus' don't like it when ya act an' talk like that an' I'm with 'er on it. It's one thing to be jokin' 'round with us but if ya was ta slip up an' act like that with someone else, we'd both be upset with ya."

"I didn't mean to, daddy."

"I know ya didn't an' mama knows it too. Here," he handed her a plate, "carry that ta mama an' tell yer sorry fer actin' like ya did then come get yer plate."

"Yes sir."

Celia carried the plate into the living room and climbed up on the couch beside her mama.

"I'm sorry, mommy. I didn't mean ta make ya mad."

Beth sat her plate down on the side table and pulled Celia closer to her. "Oh sweetie, I'm not mad. I'm just upset that you would talk to your daddy like that."

"I won't do it again, mommy. I promise."

"You better not or Halloween won't be the only thing you miss out on."

She didn't miss the little pout on Celia's face but she let it go and kissed her forehead before the girl jumped down and ran to the kitchen.

A few minutes later, Daryl and Celia emerged with their plates and some drinks.

"What're we watchin'?" Daryl asked as he sat down next to Beth and Celia sat down on the floor in front of them.

" _Hocus Pocus_ ," she replied without taking her eyes off of the tv.

"Hmm, since you think I'm so mean maybe I should go as a pregnant Winnie for Halloween," Beth said quietly so only Daryl could hear her.

"Nah, you should go as Sarah. She's tha hot one."

"Gross," Beth laughed.

"Daddy!" Celia gasped and started to climb onto the couch. "I know what we can go as fer Halloween!"

Daryl chuckled. "Ya better take that up with mama. Far as I know there ain't gon' be no Halloween this year."

She pouted a little and batted her lashes as she looked over at her mama.

"Nope," Beth shook her head. "That only works on daddy, not me."

"Yeah," Daryl pulled Celia into his lap and tickled her. "I thought ya only batted them lashes at me. 'Sides, ya can't use that on mama, that's where ya get it from."

Celia giggled and Daryl laughed.

"Mommy, please! Please can we have Halloween?"

"Yeah, mama, please," Daryl joined in on the begging.

"And you think she gets that from me?"

"Please, mommy?"

"Fine. If y'all really want to do Halloween, we will. But, y'all both have to listen and drop the attitudes. Deal?"

"Should we take this deal?" Daryl whispered in Celia's ear.

"Yeah," she said with a nod.

"Alright, we accept," Daryl said.

"I swear. Y'all are goin' to drive me crazy."

"Jus' wait 'til tha baby gets 'ere an' there's three of us," Daryl said, sticking his tongue out at her.

Beth groaned but smiled. "Lord, please help me."

"Okay, Silly Anne. What can we go as fer Halloween?"

"We can dress up as Hocus Pocus! Daddy, you can go as Billy Butcherson an' Mommy, you can go as Sarah Sanderson."

"And who will you be?" Beth asked.

"I can be Dani!"

"I don't know, sweetie. I wasn't plannin' on dressin' up with y'all this year. I'm just goin' with y'all as a chaperone so someone doesn't let you eat too much candy."

"Daddy?"

"Can we think 'bout fer a lil' while? I don't know if I want ta be Billy Butcherson."

"Okay," Celia said, climbing off her daddy's lap to finish eating.

"You just broke that little girl's heart." "I told 'er we'd think 'bout so we can find somethin' else."

"Is there a reason you don't want to go as Billy Butcherson?"

"Hell yeah there is. I don't like them damn things. I'd rather go as that scarecrow again."

"I'll see if we can come up with somethin' else when I put her to bed later. But like I said earlier, don't be surprised if you end up havin' to wear tights, Mr. Dixon."


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Here's the second Part of Hocus Pocus. I hope y'all enjoy it and remember, this is supposed to be a cute little fic so I apologize if there's not a lot of details.

** Hocus Pocus  **

**Part II **

"Mommy, why won't daddy dress up with me?" Celia asked as she crawled into bed.

"Oh sweetie, you know Daddy will dress up with you because you're his Silly Anne. We just need to find somethin' that will work for both of you."

"But I wanted ta be Cinderella."

"I know you did but do you really think daddy is Prince Charmin'?"

Celia nodded. "Daddy is Prince Charmin', Mommy. You always say he's yours an' he's mine too."

"That's because he is our Prince Charmin'," Beth said as she sat down on Celia's bed. "Daddy is a very different and a much better kind of Prince Charmin'. He doesn't wear tights or fancy suits and he doesn't care if we have glass slippers or boots on. He loves us no matter what."

"An' we love him no matter what."

"Yes we do, sweetie." Beth leaned over and placed a kiss on her forehead. "Now say your prayer and go to sleep."

* * *

 

Beth rolled over in bed to face Daryl.

"Are you sure you don't want to know if we're havin' a boy or girl?"

"I'm sure," he grunted. "'Sides, I didn't know we was havin' a girl when we had Celia."

"Well to be fair, I didn't know either."

"I don't want ta know yet but if ya want ta know, Beth, I ain't gon' stop ya."

"No, Daryl. I want us to find out together. Even if that means we have to wait until it's time, I'm fine with that."

She scooted closer to him as the both drifted off to sleep.

* * *

 

The thunder roared outside and Celia clung tight to her stuffed bear as the nightlight by the door flickered off.

She knew her mommy and daddy were probably sleeping through this storm and if it hadn't have been so close to Halloween, she would probably be sleeping through it too.

She pulled her blanket up over head when she heard the floorboards in front of her bedroom door creaking.

When the noise stopped, she crawled out of bed, clutching her bear tightly, and slowly opened her bedroom door.

The nightlight her mommy and daddy always left on by their bedroom door was out and the hallway was pitch black as she hurried to their door and pushed it open.

"Mommy? Daddy?" she whispered but neither answered her so she tiptoed to her mommy's side and patted her arm.

"Mommy, wake up," she said a little louder this time but she still didn't move.

Tears formed in Celia's eyes as she bent down and put her face as close as she could to her mommy's. "Mommy," she whispered again.

* * *

 

Daryl heard their screams and rushed back to the bedroom. Both Beth and Celia screamed again when he burst through the door yelling.

"Y'all okay? What tha hell happened? Are y'all alright?"

Beth was sitting up in bed and nodded but Celia shook her head no as tears ran down her face.

"Mommy scared me," Celia cried. "She scared me first!" Beth said when Daryl looked at her.

As the three of them calmed down, Daryl picked Celia up and put her in the bed between them.

"What was ya doin' out a bed?" he asked as he watched his little girl burrow herself under their blankets.

"I heard noises," she said quietly.

"What kind a noises did ya hear?"

"The floor was creakin', Daddy, an' my fishy went out."

"Sweetie," Beth said as she put her arm around her little girl, "you've never been scared of storms and the lights goin' out before. Why were you scared now?"

"I didn't want tha Creeper ta get me, Mommy."

"The Creeper? What are you talkin' about, Celia?"

"Ah shit," Daryl mumbled. "I think I know what she's talkin' 'bout."

"I sure as hell hope you know what she's talkin' about."

"Daddy said he was gon' let tha Creeper take me 'cause I couldn't pick out a costume."

"Care to explain yourself?" Beth asked.

"It ain't as bad as ya think, Mama. We was talkin' 'bout watchin' scary movies an' she said she wanted ta try ta watch Jeepers Creepers again 'cause she was a big girl an' wasn't scared of him no more. An' I told 'er if she didn't hurry up an' pick out what she was gon' be fer Halloween I's gon' let tha Creeper get 'er."

"Daryl Dixon! How could you do that?! You know how scared she was when you let her watch it before!"

"I didn't think she was gon' get scared jus' from me sayin' that!"

"She's too young for movies like that."

"I am right here," Celia huffed.

"We know ya are, Silly Anne."

"Celia, you know there's nothin' to be scared of because the Creeper isn't real, right?"

Celia nodded.

"Yeah," Daryl agreed. "Jus' think a tha Creeper an' all those other monsters as them witches from Hocus Pocus. They ain't real an' they ain't nothin' ta be scared of."

Beth sighed and shook her head. "Why don't we all try to go back to sleep and we'll finish this little talk in the mornin'."

* * *

 

"Mommy," Celia whispered as she sat up and patted her mommy's arm. "Wake up, mommy."

"I'm awake, Celia," Beth groaned but didn't open her eyes.

"But mommy, open your eyes."

"Is that really necessary?"

She scrunched up her nose as she stared down at her mommy. "What does that mean?"

"It means it's too damn early ta be awake, girl," Daryl muttered from beside her.

"It's not that early, daddy. Tha sun is up."

Daryl peeked his eye open and mumbled, "Go back ta sleep."

"No, daddy. Mommy, wake up. We have ta go ta tha mall."

"And why do we have to go there?"

"'Cause we have ta get my costume, mommy. I know what I want ta be."

"Celia, let us sleep a lil' longer an' we'll both go ta tha mall with ya," Daryl said as he pulled Celia down next to him.

"But daddy," Celia pouted. "I wanted ta go as Belle."

"Who?" Daryl asked.

"She's the princess on _Beauty and the Beas_ t," Beth replied.

"I want ta be Beauty, daddy an' you can be Beast."

Daryl snorted. "He don't wear tights, does he?"

"No, Daryl, he doesn't."

"Alright, then I ain't got no problem with goin' as him."

Beth opened one eye and raised her eyebrow. "Seriously? You would really go as Beast but not as Prince Charmin'?"

"Yeah, I would but only if ya go with us."

Celia's eyes lit up. "Please, mommy. You can go as Belle too."

"Fine," Beth sighed. "We might as well get up now because we'll never find anythin' for us to wear if we don't."

* * *

 

Beth held up a dress for Celia and little girl shook her head.

"No, mommy. Belle wears yellow."

"I know what she wears but they don't have that here and we haven't been able to find the costume anywhere."

Celia put her hands on her hips and squinted her eyes.

"Damn, girl," Daryl said. "Gettin' ta look more an' more like yer mama when ya do that."

"Shut up, Daryl and help me find somethin' for her so we can get out of here."

"Yes, ma'am. We'll go 'head an' get us all somethin' ta eat while ya look fer somethin'."

"That's fine with me. Just don't be too long. I am so ready to get home and put my feet up."

Daryl smiled and gave her a kiss before picking Celia up.

"Oh, sweetie. You should be at home," Beth heard behind her and turned around to see Lori standing behind her.

"I would be but Celia decided to go as Belle and have Daryl go as Beast."

"That will be so cute," Lori said. "I wish Judy would pick somethin' cute and normal like that."

"Normal?"

"She wants to be Maleficent. Rick will be King Stephen, I'll be Queen Leah and Carl is goin' as one of Maleficent's goons."

"That's not that bad. It's actually really cute that y'all are goin' with a theme. Although, I think Judy would make such a cute Sleepin' Beauty and you would think she would rather go as her than as Maleficent."

"Yeah, you would think that but Judy definitely has a mind of her own."

"Mommy!" Judy shrieked.

"I found the dress!"

"I guess I better go," Lori laughed.

* * *

 

"There you are! I have been lookin' all over this damn place," Beth all but shouted when she found Daryl. "Where's Celia?"

"She's in there," he said without looking at her.

"You let her go in there by herself?! Are you crazy?!"

"She told me ta stay out 'ere," he said, turning to look at her. "An' she had that look on 'er face that she gets, tha same one you get, when ya got yer mind set on somethin'. Wasn't no way I's goin' in there with 'er."

Beth shook her head. "Are you really scared of a six year old?"

"Hell yeah an' 'er mama," he smirked.

"Don't even go there, Daryl Dixon or you'll be sleepin' on the couch."

"Yes ma'am."

"Come on, let's see if we can find her before she causes any trouble," Beth said as she took his hand.

"Celia Annette Dixon, why did you leave your daddy standin' out there?"

The little girl looked to her and smiled then pointed towards the dresses on the wall.

"That's my Belle dress, mommy!"


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Here's the final chapter to this Halloween special. I hope y'all like it. I am warning y'all though, it does stray from the Halloween fun for just a little bit but it has a purpose and it is sort of a build up to another installment to this series.
> 
> Anyway, hope y'all have a fun and safe Halloween!
> 
> To see a picture of Celia and Judy, check out my tumblr And please review!

**Hocus Pocus**

**Part III**

"Can I get that dress, mommy? Please?"

"I…I," Beth looked to Daryl. "Can you get it down for me?"

He gave her a nod and reached up and took the dress down and handed it to Beth.

Beth's eyes widened when she looked at the price tag. "Oh wow, sweetie, this dress is more than we can afford."

"How much is it?" Daryl asked.

"Three hundred dollars."

"Shit," Daryl muttered to himself and then knelt down in front of Celia. "Can ya look 'round while me an' mama talk?"

Celia nodded and hugged her daddy before walking towards a shelf with tiaras and slippers.

"Daryl," Beth shook her head, "there is absolutely no way we can afford this dress. Especially as just a Halloween costume that she's only goin' to wear once."

"I know," he agreed. "Maybe we could see if they'll hold it for us an' we could go somewhere else ta find somethin' cheaper?"

"I don't think puttin' it on hold is necessary, Daryl. At this price, it'll still be here next year."

"Go tell Celia we put it on hold an' we'll go somewhere else."

She walked over to where Celia was trying on shoes and sat down on the bench next to her little girl.

"Sweetie, I know you want that dress but we think we should keep lookin'. And who knows, we may find one you really like somewhere else."

Celia looked up at her mommy with tears in her eyes and Beth felt her heart breaking.

"Okay, mommy," she said as she slipped her feet back into her boots.

* * *

 

"I can't believe we didn't find anythin'," Beth said quietly as Daryl laid a sleeping Celia down on the couch. "I guess I could make her one."

"Would ya have time ta do that?"

"Maybe. I wouldn't make the whole dress. I could go back and get that yellow dress we saw, the one that she said was too plain, and I could add to it."

"An' what 'bout yer dress? We didn't find anythin' fer you either."

"I really didn't think we would find anythin' for me. It's hard enough to find a dress with enough elastic to go around me and that's comfortable to just wear to church. I wasn't expectin' to find a dress like she had in mind."

Daryl followed Beth into the kitchen and leaned against the counter while she poured them each a glass of tea.

"We could skip Halloween this year," he suggested.

"After both of you beggin' me for Halloween, we are not skippin' it."

He pushed himself away from the counter and walked up behind her, wrapping his arms around her as much as he could.

"Why not? We could have Halloween like we did that first year we was together. Jus' sittin' 'round eatin' candy 'til we got sick an' watchin' movies."

Beth smiled and leaned back into him.

"That would be nice but I doubt Celia would go for it."

"We could send 'er out with Rick an' Lori an' we could stay 'ere."

Beth snorted. "Yeah. She definitely wouldn't go for that."

"It's worth a shot."

"Well then, good luck tryin' to tell her that."

"Mommy," Celia whimpered while rubbing her eyes. "My tummy hurts."

Daryl let go of Beth and watched as she sat down at the table and pulled Celia closer to her.

"Do you feel like you're goin' to throw up or is it hurtin'?"

"I feel like I'ma throw up."

Daryl opened the fridge and pulled out a bottle of ginger ale and poured her a glass.

"Here, baby girl," he said. "See if this'll help ya."

She took a small sip and shook her head.

"Do you want daddy to fix you a piece of toast or some crackers?"

"No."

Daryl knelt down in front of her and Beth and asked, "What can I get ya ta make ya feel better?"

She stuck out her bottom lip, wrapped her arms around her daddy's neck and laid her head on his shoulder.

"Celia, answer your daddy. What do you think will make you feel better?"

"A cookie," she mumbled.

"A cookie," Daryl chuckled. "Do ya really feel bad or do ya jus' want somethin' sweet?"

"Celia sweetie, if you're sick like that, you can't have a cookie and well, I guess we'll just have to cancel Halloween."

Celia dropped her arms from around her daddy's neck and her mouth dropped open when she turned around to look at her mommy.

"No, mommy!"

"I'm sorry, Celia but if you're sick we can't risk it."

She slung her arms around Daryl's neck again and put her back on his shoulder as she cried.

"Baby girl, can ya let me an' mama talk fer a minute?"

"No," she whined.

"Why not?" he asked.

"'Cause you an' mommy talked at tha store an' I didn't get my dress."

"All right," he said. "Then me an' you are gon' have us a lil' talk without mama."

Beth watched as Daryl picked her up and carried her into the living room.

* * *

 

"Why are ya actin' like this?" He asked once he had sat her down.

"Actin' like what, daddy?"

"Actin' like a brat. Ya ain't never acted like this 'fore so why ya actin' like this now?"

"Mmhmm," she shrugged.

"Celia Annette Dixon, don't 'mmhmm' me. Answer my question."

"I'm not yer baby no more," she muttered.

"Who tha hell said ya ain't tha baby no more?"

"You an' mommy. Mommy's havin' another baby an' you don't want ta go trick or treatin' with me no more."

Daryl was in shock for a moment as he stared at her, both with tears in their eyes.

He grabbed her and pulled her onto his lap and wrapped his arms around her.

"Jus' 'cause mama's havin' another baby don't mean you ain't still our baby. An' ya know what ya are that yer brother or sister ain't?"

She shook her head.

"You're my Silly Anne. They cain't ever be my Silly Anne an' there won't ever be another Silly Anne."

He kissed her cheek and then her forehead.

"I love ya, baby girl an' I always will. No matter what."

"I love ya, too, daddy."

* * *

 

Beth couldn't help but smile and cry as she listened to Daryl and Celia.

It broke her heart to think their baby girl thought they didn't love her anymore and then she just felt guilty.

She would never love one child more than the other but she felt the guilt of it anyway. She felt the guilt and hurt of not realizing what was wrong and then to have to hear her baby say that. She felt as if she had failed as a mother.

* * *

 

Later that night, Daryl had tucked Celia into bed and gone to the living room to make sure the tv was off when he heard Beth crying in the kitchen.

"Hey," he whispered and put his arms around her. "Ya all right?"

"No, Daryl," she cried. "I heard you and Celia earlier. I can't believe she thought that! I feel like the worst mom in the world."

"Baby, ya ain't tha worst mom in tha world. 'Far as I know, you're tha best damn mom there is an' ever could be."

"Then why does she think that? What did I do?"

He rubbed his hand up and down her back and tried to think of something, anything, to say to make her feel better but he couldn't when he had been wondering the same thing.

Beth pulled back from him and wiped her eyes.

"I should call daddy," she said. "He may know what we to say to her."

"Are ya sure ya want ta do that? I mean, last time we went back home ya told 'im ta quit tellin' us how ta raise 'er."

"Yeah, but we've talked since then and I know I shouldn't have said that to him. He was only tryin' to help us. And you said it yourself, we don't know shit about raisin' kids, even if we're doin' our best it doesn't hurt to have someone with experience give us advice."

"Was I drunk when I said that?" he laughed.

He raised his hands in the air when she glared at him.

"This is serious, Daryl. We have to do somethin' about it."

"I know we do. I don't like seein' 'er like that."

She sighed. "I'll try talkin' to her in the mornin' and if that doesn't work then I'll call daddy."

* * *

 

Daryl laid in bed wide awake until just before their alarm went off.

He hurried through his shower and breakfast then grabbed his lunch for the day and was out the door before either of his girls woke up.

All day long he thought about Celia and how much it hurt to hear her saying she wasn't his baby anymore.

He was prepared, sort of, to hear that from her as she got older and wanted to pull away from him and Beth but he never could have prepared himself to hear it now.

He would do anything to show that little girl how much he loved her and that's just what he planned to do.

* * *

 

"It's perfectly normal," Lori assured Beth. "Carl was a little older than Celia is now when we had Judith and that certainly didn't make things any easier. I tried to force him to spend time with me before she arrived and Rick did the same."

"What changed?"

"Well, the forced bonding wasn't working so we decided not to force the subject anymore. What we did was wait until she was born and try a new approach."

"A new approach?" Beth asked as she peeked out the back door at Celia and Judith playing in the yard.

"Yeah, a new approach. We started with little things like asking for his opinion on the paint for the nursery, a new baby bed, what clothes he thought we should carry to the hospital. Just little things like that and then we all discussed names and Carl was the one who named Judy because Rick and I never could agree and when it came time to fill out her birth certificate, we didn't have a name or even a list. But Carl did."

"That's sweet of him but we're already gettin' her opinion on everything, including names."

"Well then, you may want to try asomethin' else. She is younger than Carl was. Maybe she feels like she doesn't have your attention like she did before and if that's the case, it'll only get worse once then baby comes."

* * *

 

Celia didn't jump up and run outside like she usually did when Daryl would get home from work and Beth didn't meet him at the door.

When he stepped inside, the house was dark but he could smell something was cooking so he followed his nose. "

Where's Celia?" he asked.

"She's in her room."

"Somethin' wrong with 'er?"

"Nope," Beth shook her head. "Nothin' more than feelin' like we don't love her anymore."

She turned around and almost dropped the bowl in her hands.

"What is that?"

"Oh," Daryl held out the bag in his hands. "I...uh...I got somethin' fer Celia."

"You shouldn't have done that, Daryl. We can't buy her when we feel like we've failed."

"Ya don't understand, I had ta do it, Beth."

"No, you didn't."

* * *

 

"Yeah, I did. What she said, it hurt like hell. She's my daughter, my baby girl, but she ain't my blood. What if she knows that? What if she knows I ain't 'er dad?"

"Oh, Daryl," Beth wiped at her eyes. "You are her dad. Nothin' will ever change that." She took the few steps towards him, put her hands on either side of his face and gave him a kiss. "Blood doesn't matter. All that matters is that you are the one who is there for her, just like you've always been there for her. She has your last name and, lord help the girl, she acts just like you."

"But what if she's right? What if I love this baby more than her?"

Beth dropped her hands down to his shoulders. "Have you every thought of it before?"

"Naw. I ain't never thought nothin' like that."

"Then don't worry about it. I know you, Daryl, and I know how much you love her."

Daryl dropped the bag he was holding and put his arms around Beth.

"What'd we do 'bout this?" He asked.

"Well, I talked to Lori this mornin' and then I talked to daddy and he had Maggie call me afterwards. Lori suggested we get Celia more involved with things concernin' the baby, dandy thought we should try talkin' to her and give her a chance to tell us what she feels, and then Maggie suggested we go ahead and tell her the truth. She said she remembered how Shawn acted when I came along and that's when mama and daddy decided to tell him that daddy had adopted him and tha mama had adopted her. Of course Shawn was ten when they had me so he was able to understand some of what they were tellin' him even if he didn't fully understand it."

"How tha hell is that s'posed ta work?"

"That's what I asked her and then she told me I should call Shawn and ask him if he remembered it."

"Did ya call 'im?"

"I did and he he told me it confused him at first but then he realized that daddy truly loved him or he wouldn't have made him his son."

He shook his head, "I don't know 'bout this."

"Neither do I but I think we should do what we're comfortable with. And I for one am not comfortable explain' this to a six year old. I do think we should keep showin' her that we love her and not change a thing about it. And after the baby is born, we'll both have special time with her. What do you think?"

"I think that's what we should do."

Beth smiled. "Now what's in that bag?"

"Don't worry 'bout it. It ain't fer you."

"All right then, go on and give it to her while I finish up dinner."

* * *

 

He tapped his knuckles on her bedroom and gave it the tiniest of pushes then leaned against the doorframe and watched her playing.

"Hi, daddy."

"Hey, Silly Anne. What ya doin'?"

"Playin', daddy."

"Mind if I join ya?"

"No sir."

He moved further into the room and sat down on the floor across from her.

"Here, daddy," she handed him a Barbie. "You can be her."

"What're we doin'?"

"We're fightin' zombies," she said and handed him another Barbie doll that was covered in fake blood.

"Does yer mama know ya did this ta these dolls?"

"Mommy helped me."

He sat the Barbie's down and reached over to Celia.

"Come 'ere, baby girl. I want talk ta ya."

"Okay, daddy," she said and moved over to sit in his lap. "What'd ya want ta talk 'bout?"

"Well, ya know what ya told me, that ya wasn't my baby no more?"

She nodded.

"An' I told ya that wasn't true, ya'd always be my baby. I want ya ta know I meant that. An' ya know, me an' mama ain't tha only ones havin' a baby. That baby is gon' be her lil' brother or sister an' that makes it yers too an' jus' 'cause there's another baby comin' don't mean we love ya any less. Ya know that, right?"

"I know, daddy. But will I still get ta cuddle with you an' mommy? An' can we go fishin' an' huntin' without tha baby?"

"Yeah, 'course we can. You'll always be my fishin' an' huntin' buddy an' we'll go, jus' tha two a us, any time we can."

"Okay, daddy," she said with a smile.

He smiled as well and kissed the top of her head.

"I almost forgot but I got ya somethin'," he said and handed her the bag.

"Wow, daddy!" Her eyes lit up and her mouth dropped open then she looked up at him with tears in her eyes.

"What's wrong, baby?"

"Now mommy doesn't have a dress."

"Hey, you two, dinner's ready," Beth said from the doorway.

"Mommy," Celia jumped up with the dress in her hands to show her mommy. "Look what daddy got fer me."

"Silly Anne," he said. "That's from me an' mama."

Beth and Daryl both smiled as Celia held the dress up and twirled with it.

"It's so pretty. Thank you, daddy. Thank you, mommy."

Daryl stood and made his way over to them.

"I got you somethin' too, mama, but yers is in tha livin' room."

* * *

 

Celia swung her legs back and forth while sitting on the coffee table as Beth opened the bag Daryl had for her.

"Oh, Daryl," Beth gasped. "I love it. Where did you get these dresses?"

He rubbed a hand over the back of his neck and looked down.

"I...uh...I went back ta that store where Celia found that dress. I's jus' gon' see if they had somethin' fer both a ya but they didn't an' tha woman there wasn't willin' ta go down on tha price a that dress any but some woman that was in there gave me card ta shop down tha street an' they had both a those there."

"Do I want to know how much they were?"

He shrugged. "They wasn't much. Tha woman that owned that shop was goin' out a business so ever'thin' was on sale. I only spent forty bucks fer both."

"Well, Mr. Dixon, you did good. Now we just have to find your costume."

"No we don't, mommy. I want daddy ta go as our Prince Charmin' not Beast."

* * *

 

Celia twirled and twirled in her new dress while Beth was putting hers on.

"Gonna make yerself sick doin' that," Daryl muttered but Celia giggled.

"This dress is so pretty, daddy. It's tha most prettiest dress ever."

"Daryl," Beth groaned. "Get in here and help me put this damn thing on!"

"No, mommy! Daddy has ta get ready too!"

"Daryl, I'm not kiddin'. I can't get this thing zipped.

* * *

 

"Ya feelin' all right?" Daryl whispered to Beth.

"I'm fine but I don't think I'll be able to walk around with y'all."

"See if ya can stay with Lori an' pass out candy while me an' Rick take tha girls an' Carl out."

"No, I'll try to go to a few houses with y'all since Celia wanted us all to dress up."

Daryl glanced into the rearview mirror at Celia in the backseat before pulling into the driveway at the Grimes'.

"I'm sure she'll understand," he said.

"Maybe so but I still want to do this for her."

"Mommy, daddy, look! Uncle Rick an' Aunt Lori dressed up too!"

"I see that," Beth said as Celia unbuckled her seat belt and lunged for the door.

"Celia Annette!" Daryl snapped. "Ya know ya ain't s'posed ta get out a tha truck 'til it's shut off."

"I know," she mumbled and sat back in the seat.

Beth shook her head and opened the door and said, "Come on, Princess Belle."

Celia opened her door, jumped out of the truck and took off running towards Rick and Lori.

"Silly!" Judith screeched as she ran towards her friend.

"Judy!" Celia jumped up and down. "You're Maleficent!"

* * *

 

Celia and Judy skipped ahead of their parents and Carl walked behind them.

"I think one more house is all I'm goin' to be able to do," Beth said to Lori.

"You can come back to the house and help me pass out candy."

"I'm startin' to think that would be the best thing to do. I don't even have ankles anymore."

"That's perfectly normal," Lori assured her. "And it's a damn good excuse to put your feet up and let Daryl handle things with Celia for a while."

"I can't do that."

"Sure you can. I don't mean leave everything up to him but you do need to rest and get off your feet, even if you only do it for a couple of days."

Beth shrugged. "Daryl's been on me about restin' more and lettin' him do things with havin' to supervise."

"Mommy," Celia shouted as she ran towards her. "Can I go ta tha haunted house with Judy?"

"No, Celia. You don't need to go to a haunted house."

"I'll go with 'er," Daryl said as he picked up Celia.

"That's not a good idea. You know how she reacted to the whole Creeper thing."

"It's really not that scary," Rick offered. "Carl won't even go to it anymore 'cause he thinks it's for babies."

"Okay, you can go but you have to stay right with daddy," she said to Celia.

"What 'bout you, mommy?"

"If y'all are goin' to a haunted house, I'm goin' back to the house with Lori to pass out candy."

* * *

 

The night was beginning to wind down when Beth and Lori heard a loud thump and then the front door opened.

"Where are the girls?" Lori asked Rick and Daryl.

"We're s'posed ta tell y'all we lost 'em," Daryl said quietly.

"Where are they?" Beth asked.

"They're with Carl outside. They came up with some crazy idea that Carl's some kind of zombie and he attacked them."

"Y'all didn't let them ruin their dresses, did y'all?"

"No, mama," Daryl said, taking a few steps closer to Beth. "I wouldn't let 'er ruin that dress but jus' wait 'til ya see what yer daughter did."

"Oh, so she's my daughter now?"

"Yeah, she's all yers," he grinned at her.

"Okay you two lovebirds," Lori interrupted. "It seems we have two very sneaky girls to find."

* * *

 

The four of them stepped out of the house and did their best to keep their laughs to themselves when they heard the moaning sounds and then little giggles.

Both girls screeched and moaned as Carl came into view and grabbed them.

"Mommy, help us," Judy cried out.

"Oh my God," Beth whispered to Daryl while they watched the girls and Carl stumbling around. "I don't know if I should laugh, cry or both."

"I know ya cain't keep a straight face but ya got ta try."

"Well, listen at you gettin' nerve to tell me what to do, Mr. Dixon."

He grinned and leaned down to give her a kiss.

Celia and Judy stumbled a few steps closer to their parents then collapsed on the ground.

"Mommy, daddy," they both moaned.

"Oh!" Beth yelled a little louder than she meant to. "My baby girl!"

She knelt down next to Celia with Daryl's help and held the girls hand in her own.

"My sweet baby girl," she pretended to cry.

Daryl reached out and gently poked her stomach and then felt for a pulse.

"Yep, she's gone," he said. "Tha only thing we can do now is leave 'er 'ere an' go home an' pack up all a her things."

"We could do that," beth said as Daryl helped her stand again. "Or we could go home and eat all of her candy while we watch Hocus Pocus."

"I like tha way ya think."

Daryl and Beth slowly walked towards their truck while Rick gently lifted Judy into his arms and as he and Lori pretended to cry.

Celia peeked one eye open and raised her head a little bit off the ground.

She wanted to jump up and run to her mommy and daddy but instead she slowly stood up and drug her foot as she walked towards them.

Daryl closed tha door after making sure all of Beth's dress was inside the truck then walked around to the drivers side.

"Help me," Celia moaned.

Daryl winked at Beth then turned around towards Celia.

"Silly Anne, I thought you was dead."

She giggled but kept moving towards him until she reached out and grabbed his hand.

"No!" Beth shouted from inside the truck as Daryl slid down to the ground in front of Celia.

She slid over to the driver door and eased it open to see Daryl lying on the ground.

"Oh no! Daryl?"

She didn't mean for it to happen but it did. The moment a tear rolled down Beth's cheek, Celia jumped up and rushed towards her mommy.

"Mommy, don't cry. Me an' daddy's okay."

* * *

 

"I am so glad this night is over," Beth said as she propped her feet up on a couple of pillows.

"You an' me both."

"I think she had fun tonight."

"She did," Daryl groaned as he laid down next to her. "Are ya really gon' eat that candy?"

"Only a few pieces. The rest is Celia's."

"Mommy? Daddy?" Celia rubbed her eyes as she stepped into the room. "Can I sleep in here?"

"Of course you can, baby girl," Beth patted the spot between her and Daryl.

After Celia had climbed into the bed and was under tha covers, Beth turned on the TV and snuggled up to her baby girl.

Daryl smiled to himself as he sat up in bed and saw that both Celia and Beth had fallen asleep.

* * *

* * *


End file.
